There have been many advancements in the area of rehabilitation apparatus for range of motion. Efforts have included inventions as described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,226,394 (Johnson) and U.S. Pat. No. 7,594,879 (Johnson), the disclosures which are hereby expressly incorporated by reference. Although these devices have helped many people with their rehabilitation, they also have certain limitations.
One problem with existing devices is that in order to change the pedal position, a physical therapist, assistant, or a patient has to remove/unstrap one or both limbs from the pedals of the device, and then put the affected limb back into or onto the pedals to again start using the device. This delays the treatment session, requires care for the affected limb while changing settings on the apparatus, and wastes an already limited amount of time that many people in recovery have with the device and the physical therapist.
Further, some existing devices comprise an entire cycling unit which cannot be retrofitted or used with to other cycle ergometers. Some of these devices are large and heavy cycles that are difficult to move and/or use outside of a clinical setting. Still further, some devices cannot be easily disassembled for cleaning as needed in certain clinical settings, due to the complexity and makeup of the parts required.
Therefore, there is a need for an apparatus providing selective adjustment of the range of motion of a user's extremities, including either arms or legs, actively, assisted-actively, or passively engaging in or participating in a cycling action, that does not have the problems associated with the prior art.